The Patriotic Action Groups (GAP), formed by the general command of the

Garibaldi Brigades The ''Brigate Garibaldi'' or Garibaldi Brigades were partisan units aligned with the Italian Communist Party active in the armed resistance against both German and Italian fascist forces during World War II. The Brigades were mostly made up of ...

at the end of October 1943, were small groups of partisans that were born on the initiative of the

Italian Communist Party The Italian Communist Party ( it, Partito Comunista Italiano, PCI) was a communist political party in Italy. The PCI was founded as ''Communist Party of Italy'' on 21 January 1921 in Livorno by seceding from the Italian Socialist Party (PSI) ...

to operate mainly in the city, based on the experience of the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

. The militants of the GAP were called "Gappisti". By extension, the less numerous partisan socialist and shareholder city units were also called GAP. One of the successful operations of the GAP was the Via Rasella attack in March 1944. Led by Bruno Fanciullacci, members of the GAP assassinated Italian fascist philosopher

Giovanni Gentile Giovanni Gentile (; 30 May 1875 – 15 April 1944) was an Italian neo-Hegelian idealist philosopher, educator, and fascist politician. The self-styled "philosopher of Fascism", he was influential in providing an intellectual foundation for ...

in April 1944.

Bibliography

* Istituto Storico Modena. Archived June 9, 2008 in the Internet Archive. * Pietro Secchia, Enzo Nizza, Encyclopedia of anti-fascism and resistance, vol. II, La Pietra, 1968, entry "GAP", p. 476. * Paolo Spriano, History of the Italian Communist Party, vol. V, The Resistance. Togliatti and the new party, Turin, Einaudi, 1975, p. 184. * Interview with Carla Capponi and Rosario Bentivegna by Cesare De Simone, Rome '44: the patriots and the people ( PDF ), in l'Unità , 24 March 1972. In the interview, the former gappists criticize the use of the initials GAP by the Partisan Action Groups of Giangiacomo Feltrinelli. Carla Capponi in fact continues: "I think this too can convey the idea of the provocation carried out today by those who hide behind the glorious GAP acronym, making it a secret and terrorist sect". * Lieutenant Legislative Decree 21 August 1945, n. 518, Provisions concerning the recognition of partisans' qualifications and the examination of reward proposals, on gazzettaufficiale.it. * Civil Court of Rome, judgment of 26 May-9 June 1950. * Letter from Giorgio Amendola to Leone Cattani Archived June 3, 2009, at the Internet Archive. * Interview with Rosario Bentivegna. * Antonello Trombadori, The military and illegal network of the PCI, in: The PCI in Rome from its foundation to 1976. * Antonello Trombadori, motivation for the honor of military valor * Letter from "Vineis" (Pietro Secchia) to the centre of the PCI of Rome, Milan, November 20, 1943, in Longo 1973, pp. 136–7. {{Authority control Communist organisations in Italy 1943 establishments in Italy Italian resistance movement 1945 disestablishments in Italy